Gold Sweeps at Annual Blue-Gold Swimming Scrimmage
10/11/2002 12:00:00 AM | Swimming & Diving
Gold Sweeps at Annual Blue-Gold Swimming Scrimmage
10/11/2002
PITTSBURGH ?
"The intensity of the teams was palpable," Head Coach Chuck Knoles said. "I think we had so much at stake ? a travel meet to Seattle which made every athlete a little more focused than he or she would have been normally."
On the women?s side, the Gold side won a close 142-133 battle under captain Jenny Livingstone (Endwell, N.Y./Union-Endicott). For the men, the Gold won by a final count of 151-128 and were led by junior captain Eric Limkemann (New Haven, Ind./Woodlan).
A meet record was broken in the very first event of the afternoon, the women?s 200 medley relay. The Gold team of Whitney Severino (West Chester, Pa./Henderson), Ryan Redman (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills), Kelli Tielking (Damascus, Md./Damascus) and Livingstone won with a time of 1:47.56, more than two and a half second faster than the previous top time at the Blue-Gold meet.
Samantha Chabotar?s seven-year-old record in the 1000 freestyle was broken by senior Emily Colley (Pace, Fla./Pace), the Panthers? top distance freestyler and only NCAA representative a year ago. Colley?s time of 10:12.61 was more than 10 seconds faster than Chabotar?s time in 1995. Two events later, in the 200 freestyle, freshman Amy Miteff (Wellington, Fla./Wellington) broke another women?s Blue-Gold meet record with a time of 1:55.29, breaking another of Chabotar?s marks.
Limkemann scored an early victory for the Gold team with a win in the 1000 freestyle but he couldn?t eclipse his own meet-record time in the swim. Senior Mike Grube (Drexel Hill, Pa./Upper Darby) had the same results in the men?s 200 freestyle ? winning the event but not beating his own meet record set in 2000.
For the fourth consecutive women?s event, a meet record was broken, this time by Carolyne Savini (Egg Harbour Twp., N.J./Holy Spirit) in the 100 backstroke. Her time of 58.31 seconds was 0.13 faster than Beth Grube in 1998. The streak came to an end in the next women?s event, the 100 breaststroke. Redman won the event for the Gold team with a time of 1:06.06, but that was 1.07 seconds short of her own meet record, set two years ago.
Miteff earned her second meet record in the 200 butterfly, racing to a time of 2:05.77. She topped Irene Stergios? time of 2:09.02 in 1995 as did second-place finisher Nicole Ebert (Spring, Texas/Klein) with a time of 2:08.30. The first men?s meet record was broken in the men?s 200 butterfly by junior Ken Shelhorse (Gaithersburg, Md./Damascus). His time of 1:53.24 was almost one second faster than Ryan Rahaeuser?s old record, which was set last year.
Livingstone helped the Gold team to a bigger lead with a meet-record time of 24.28 seconds in the 50 freestyle. She edged Isabel Dejo?s time of 24.4 seconds, set back in 1997. With Grube out of the 100 freestyle, sophomore Stephen Kilroy (Allentown, Pa./Parkland) took first place in the event with a time of 21.56 seconds for the Gold team.
In the diving events, the women?s 1-meter winner was freshman Erin Leisey (Reading, Pa./Reading), with a score of 211.05 points. On the men?s side, junior Matthew Schwartz (Huntington, N.Y./Half Hollow Hills East) finished in first place with a score of 292.95 points on the 3-meter board. Freshmen Troy Kaczorowski (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) and Dennis Nemtsanov (Calhoun, Ga./Louisiana State) finished in second and third place, respectively.
Livingstone broke another women?s meet record in the 100 freestyle with a time of 53.09 seconds. That eclipsed Jill Fletcher?s 1995 time of 53.62 by over a half of a second. Grube did get a meet record in the men?s side of the 100 free, racing to the wall in 46.06 seconds, three-tenths faster than former teammate Miah Heath did in 2001.
Three women?s swimmers topped the old mark in the 200 backstroke, set by Karen Thibodeau in 2000. Savini won the event with a new record-time of 2:05.15, followed by Kelli Krallman (Cincinnati, Ohio/Ursuline Academy) with a time of 2:08.03 and Miteff at 2:08.74. Another freshman, Rebecca Mrljak (Harrisburg, Pa./Susquehanna Township), broke the meet record in the 200 breaststroke with a finishing time of 2:26.49. The old mark of 2:27.79, held by Redman, was also beaten by sophomore Cynthia Snyder (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional), by just four hundredths of a second.
Colley earned her second meet record in the 500 freestyle, swimming the event in 5:02.30, breaking the third of Chabotar?s Blue-Gold records in the process and earning some points for the Blue team. In the men?s 500 freestyle, Limkemann came within 1.12 seconds of his meet-record time of 2000 in winning the event for the Gold in 4:35.91.
Krallman became the new Blue-Gold meet record-holder in the 100 butterfly, racing to the wall in 58.59 seconds, three-tenths faster than Kristina DeWitt did in 2001. Savini scored a meet record in the 200 individual medley, finishing the race in 2:08.57, 2.14 seconds faster than Liz Perry?s time in 1998. Jennifer Koch (Cincinnati, Ohio/Mother of Mercy) and Krallman also broke the old record time by finishing in second and third place, respectively.
In the final two meets of the evening, an astounding three meet records were broken. In the women?s 200 freestyle relay, the team of Tielking, Miteff, Kate Butrie (Orefield, Pa./Parkland) and Livingstone set a meet record with a time of 1:39.67. The second-place team of Kelly Redcay (Reading, Pa./Wilson), Kristin Criner (Free Bryn Mawr, Pa./Radnor), Koch and Savini also topped the old mark, finishing just 0.48 seconds behind.
The final event saw Grube break the 50 yard freestyle mark during his leg of the 200 freestyle relay, touching the wall in 21.06 seconds. His team finished with a meet-record time of 1:25.07 and consisted of Chris Ippoliti (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga), Adam Webber (Lebanon, Pa./Cedar Crest) and Darryl Washington (Aldan, Pa./Penn Wood).
"The leadership of this team, the juniors and seniors, stepped up and performed well," Knoles said. "I was impressed."
Pittsburgh will open its dual meet season next weekend at the University of Washington. The meet will take place on Saturday, October 19.